Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)
by Maltrazz
Summary: Fact: Nabiki likes money. Problem? With the failed wedding, the bets on who Ranma will end up with are getting too great in Akane's favor. Fact: NOBODY makes Nabiki lose money, family or not. Solution? Get Ranma together with someone else. Difficult? Yes, but with a loophole in the Seppuku Contract as leverage and the right plan, not impossible for one as cunning as Nabiki Tendo.
1. The Loophole

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** From the minds that brought you 'Just Friends?' and 'various other fanfics you wish would be continued instead of the jackass author constantly starting new ones' comes a brand new story! ...Huh, somehow, that sounded less self-incriminating in my head. Oh well, here it is anyway!

There are several Ranma ½ fics out there centered around the idea of someone playing 'matchmaker', but all the ones I have found have been centered around Ranma x Akane or Ryoga x Ukyo. This is the product of me using that concept for my favorite pairing, combined with listening to such songs as 'Money, Money, Money', 'Material Girl', 'One of Those Girls', 'If You Can Afford Me', and various others that make me think of Nabiki.

Translation Note: Part of this chapter deals with the interpretation of written Japanese. Firstly, I would like to say that while my grasp of Japanese is better than the average American, I am far from fluent. The writing mentioned is not something I have translated myself, and the idea came from having seen different translators translate it slightly differently each time. This likely could not be done with canon material, so please assume that I simply tweaked it for the sake of this story. If this seems to vague, you will see what I mean when you get there.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 1: The Loophole

Nabiki liked money. In Nerima, this wasn't so much an opinion, as an accepted statement of fact. Most people thought Nabiki dealt with bets and blackmail so much because it was fast, easy money. What they failed to realize, was that the amount of time and effort Nabiki put into her endeavors was what allowed her to be so successful.

Nabiki enjoyed the money she made, but she also enjoyed the satisfaction of knowing she had properly balanced the odds she gave so that she always came out ahead when offering bets. She liked the money, cared more about the thrill she got from manipulating someone with a well placed threat and a few photos. Nabiki was surrounded by martial artists that could break all the bones in her body without even breaking a sweat, but none of them dared touch her. It wasn't because she had money, it was because she was the Ice Queen who could ruin the life of anyone who crossed her.

Nabiki liked the money, but she LOVED the power, and the reputation that came with it, too.

However, sometimes money WAS the more pressing concern. Nabiki usually had more than one 'operation' going on at a time, and she spent a lot of time going over the details of the betting pools and any ongoing or potential blackmail she was running. It was this scrutiny, combined with the luck that had been with her all her life, that had kept Nabiki from making any significant losing bets, or pushing someone too far with blackmail.

Such was how Nabiki spent one afternoon, shortly after the failed wedding between her younger sister and their freeloading house guest. With that event in recent memory, she had decided to review all standing bets in regards to whom Ranma would end up with. The results were not surprising, but they were not pleasant either.

"Dammit Akane..." Nabiki mumbled. She rarely swore, but her sisters could frustrate her to no end, at times. Mainly it was Akane that did so, but Kasumi could be trying in her own way, because she was the one person Nabiki could never bring herself to include in her schemes.

Akane was another issue entirely. She was Nabiki's sister, so she would not blackmail her directly, just like she knew Akane would never attack her. However, her younger sister's temper had worn away most of her patience, and she didn't mind including her in her schemes peripherally, or taking bets involving her.

She knew Akane did care for Ranma, so she was hesitant to interfere in their relationship. Sure, she had done so once before, temporarily becoming Ranma's fiancée, but that was before she was sure of her sister's feelings. Even so, numbers didn't lie, and with a frown, Nabiki turned from her thoughts back to the notebook in her hands.

She double-checked the numbers, but the result was the same. Adding the new bets since the wedding attempt, if Ranma and Akane did end up together, the amount of money she would get from bets on others would not be enough to covers the losses of paying out the bets in favor of her sister. "I can't lose money," Nabiki grumbled. "I NEVER lose money..."

Nabiki turned her head to glare at the wall between her and Akane's rooms. 'I didn't interfere because you were my sister, but you dragged this on too far...' Nabiki thought. Looking back at her notebook, she spoke aloud. "The gloves come off now, Akane. NOBODY makes me lose money!"

Closing the notebook with a snap, Nabiki got ready for bed. Tomorrow would be the first day of figuring out how to turn the situation around. This would take careful planning and set-up, but those were things Nabiki excelled at.

* * *

A week of no progress can be both frustrating and disheartening. For a week, Nabiki had tried to come up with a way to turn things around for the betting pool concerning Ranma. However, Ranma WAS the problem.

In order for her to make money, Ranma would need to end up with someone other than Akane, but the issue was that Ranma had never really shown interest in any girl except Akane. True, he had never truly outright rejected Ukyo or Shampoo, but it was clear to her that he did not see either in a romantic light. Nabiki sighed as she felt a headache coming on.

"Oh my, is something wrong?" Nabiki looked up at the sound of Kasumi's worried voice, seeing that her sigh had drawn the attention of the others in the room.

It was right after school, and Nabiki had come home to find Kasumi having tea with Ranma's mother. Deciding that a cup might help with the near constant headache that the situation had given her the last few days, Nabiki had joined them.

Seeing the concern of the other two, Nabiki forced a smile and said, "I'm fine, just a bit... stressed."

Nodoka set her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, you can always come to me."

Nabiki sweatdropped as she thought, 'Yes, I'm sure you would be _sooo_ understanding about my plans to use your son to make money at his expense.' Out loud, however, she just said, "Thank you, Auntie."

Nodoka withdrew her arm, only for a familiar piece of paper to fall from her sleeve as she did. "Ah!" Nodoka cried, before mumbling to herself, "I must be more careful with such an important contract."

At the word 'contract', Nabiki realized that must be the Seppuku Contract that Nodoka had mentioned carrying with her at all times. 'That's probably the most influential thing in Ranma's life right now.' Nabiki thought. 'And since I need leverage over him... but how can I make use of it?' As Ranma's mother picked up the contract, Nabiki asked, "Since we already know about the contract, would you mind if I looked at it for a moment?"

Nodoka hesitated for a moment, before shrugging and handing her the paper while saying, "I suppose there's no harm in letting you read it."

As Nabiki took the paper, her eyes were already runny over what was written. She had gotten a glimpse of it once before, when Nodoka first told them about it, and an idea was already forming in her cunning mind.

Nabiki loved the Japanese language. Whether written or vocal, there were many times it could be misconstrued, or the means of words intentionally twisted. It was the reason legally binding contracts had pages of redundancies in order to make certain that as many openings for abuse were closed as could be done in a timely manner.

I single page with two sentences on it was hardly what Nabiki would call a 'detailed contract'. She could work with this.

She quickly memorized the writing, so that she could reproduce it later before handing it back to Nodoka with a smile. "Thank you, Auntie. I am a bit curious, though. What would a guy have to be or do to be a Man Amongst Men to you?"

"Well, they would have to be a handsome man, a powerful warrior, have a healthy interest in women, and manage to get a beautiful wife."

"I see, that makes sense." Nabiki said. Finishing her cup of tea, she excused herself and returned to her room. Writing the contract she had memorized before she could forget, Nabiki sat back in her chair with the copy in hand. 'Every contract has a loophole.' Nabiki thought. 'With a contract this simple, it should be easy to find one. With a way out of this contract as bait, Saotome should jump to do what I need.'

Nabiki spent the next half an hour considering different ways the contract could be interpreted. For the most part, any changes were so miniscule as to make no effective difference. Finally, she found a way to read it that gave her pause.

"I will train Ranma, and return with a son who is a Man Amongst Men. We will commit seppuku if I fail."

'Wait a minute,' Nabiki thought as she was struck by an idea. 'If you read it like that, then the 'Man Amongst Men' doesn't even have to be Ranma, as long as it is a son of the Saotomes. Of course, since Ranma is their only child, they would have to have another for that loophole to work...' Nabiki threw the copy of the contract onto her desk in frustration, and slumped in her chair. 'Dammit Nabiki, think! At this rate you're going to lose money AND get that arrogant jock as your brother-in-law!'

Suddenly, she sat up straight as inspiration struck. "Brother... in... law..." Nabiki mumbled. "Hold on, a son-in-law is still a son, and with Ranma's curse..." A Cheshire grin spread across her face.

Quickly grabbing the notebook concerning the bet that had lead to this, Nabiki scanned through it. 'Practically every girl in Ranma's life near his age has been bet on. A few even bet on me for some reason, though those bets were placed with my assistants. However, none of the bets are for males. Ranma has been very vocally against any romantic involvement with a guy, though. Although, they say 'actions speak louder than words', and Ranma has never had a problem acting girly to get what he wants.'

Nabiki relaxed in her chair as her thoughts continued. 'The next problem would be finding another guy that fits Nodoka's criteria for a Man Amongst Men. Most of Ranma's rival would qualify for 'handsome', 'powerful martial artists', and 'interested in girls', and the 'beautiful wife' part would be taken care of if Ranma went along with it, but that's a separate issue. Let's see... Kuno would be ecstatic to marry 'the Pigtailed Girl', but Ranma would probably rather commit seppuku. Mousse would be completely uninterested. That would leave...'

"Oh, P-chan, you're back!" Nabiki heard Akane's happy cry from downstairs.

'A certain Lost Boy who is already obsessed with Ranma.' Nabiki's thought continued, her smile wider than ever. 'Come to think of it, I think Ryoga is the only one Ranma ever actually dressed up for. If not the only, then definitely the most frequent. If I suggest something like this straight out, though, neither would agree. This will take some time and some fast talking...'

As she heard Akane getting ready for bed, Nabiki thought, 'Still, can I interfere with my little sister's relationship for money?' Glancing back at the notebook still in her hands, Nabiki quickly added up how much would be made if ALL the bets lost. 'That is a LOT of zeros. Yeah, I think that would sooth my guilt.'

* * *

**AN:** And there is chapter one. I have been wanting to do a fic involving Nabiki for a while, but had not had a good plot for her until now.

There is not much else to say here, so just let me know whether you want me to continue it!


	2. The Bait

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** Hello there! Surprised to see me so soon? So am I! However, this story is fun for me to write, and I have already had many ideas for it. That said, this will probably be many people's least favorite chapter, but it is very necessary for what is to follow. The interest shown in the first chapter definitely kept my motivation up, too. 9 Reviews, 14 Favs, and 28 Follows on the first chapter alone? You guys rock!

This chapter is a result of me listening to songs like 'Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger', 'Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)', 'The Other Side of Me', 'I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)', and other such songs that help remind me of canon Ranma and Ryoga, after I have spent too much time in their fanon.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: The Bait

Nabiki ignored the others at the table, as she ate dinner. She still knew what the others were doing, however, such as Ranma and Genma fighting over food, as it was the same as what they always did. Tuning them out allowed her more time to think, though.

Nabiki had a plan; get Ranma and Ryoga together. However, there were some major obstacles to overcome. Namely, Ranma had never shown any interest in Ryoga. 'Well,' Nabiki thought, a certain fishing pole in mind, 'never shown interest without magic or disguises being involved, that is.'

As Nabiki continued eating, so too did her thoughts continue flowing. 'Magic is always an option, but if either of them connected it to me, I could be in trouble. Especially in Ryoga's case, as he is not exactly open to reason when he gets angry. I'll leave that as a last resort.

'Trying to straight up blackmail them into it probably wouldn't get either mad enough to do something stupid, but it probably would work either. I'll keep that thought as a back-up.

'Bribery would be next to useless on those two, but offering to forgive what they owe me might give me a little bit of leverage. Besides, what I would lose from that is mere pocket change compared to what I'll gain if I can pull this off.

'A subtler route will probably be better for dealing with these two.' Nabiki nodded to herself as she came to a decision. 'I'll need to get them at least a bit friendlier with each other before I can pull off this plan. Ranma should be easy enough to lead by the nose with a promise to help with the Seppuku Contract. As for Ryoga...' Nabiki smirked as she sent a glance at the piglet in her little sister's lap, 'I think this will be the perfect opportunity to use the 'P-chan' blackmail I've been saving.'

Nabiki finished her meal, and sat waiting for the rest to finish. Ranma and Genma were the first to leave. 'Figures,' Nabiki thought. 'I was hoping to talk to Ranma alone, and he's the first to leave. Oh well, I'll just wait until later.'

* * *

Ranma relaxed as he sparred with his father. Some might be surprised that fighting would put him at easy, but something had felt 'off' lately. If anything, Nerima had been _too_ calm. Ranma knew his life could only go so long without something of note happening, and with Ryoga having wandered back into town earlier that day, Ranma suspected that whatever was going to happen, would happen soon.

While Ranma had little control over the strange events that happened from time to time, when he fought, it was completely different. Even with his superior experience, Genma could no longer keep up with Ranma's speed when the teen went all out, so Ranma found their daily spars consisting less of true martial arts, and more of dirty tricks. Even so, his father was no pushover... at least, not once a fight got underway. Unfortunately, while Ranma did not have to worry about things like Seppuku Contracts or fiancées during a fight, sometimes he relaxed just a little too much, and his father would manage to land a blow.

Which was the reason why Ranma went flying through the air into the koi pond.

"Dammit Pop!" Ranma cried as she surfaced, the water having triggered her curse.

"You're getting slow, _girl_," Genma taunted. However, his tune changed a bit when he saw the redhead emerging from the pond with a scowl and a pail of water. Backing up, he said, "Well, I think that's enough for today. Hey, Tendo, how about a game of shogi?" Without further ado, he hurried inside.

Ranma sighed as he left. 'Sure, I could o' caught him, but it's getting late anyway.' Walking towards the house, Ranma rang out her drenched shirt as best she could as she grumbled, "Ugh, I'm soaked. Better go take a shower." Ranma was preoccupied with thoughts of changing back as she passed through the Tendo living room on her way to the stairs, and failed to note one of the sisters get up and follow the redhead.

Heading into her room, Ranma went to grab a new set of clothes, when she heard a voice behind her. "Do you have a moment, Saotome?"

Turning around, Ranma found that the voice belonged to Nabiki. "Uh, yeah, what d'ya need?" Ranma responded.

"Actually, this isn't about what I need, so much as what you do. I've got some information I'm sure you'll want to know." Nabiki said in an all-too-friendly tone.

Seeing as this was _Nabiki_, the unusual tone of voice immediately put Ranma on guard. Still, she _was_ curious what Nabiki was talking about. "What d'ya mean?"

"Come to my room and I'll explain. For once, you've got nothing to lose." With that said, Nabiki left the room.

Now THAT had Ranma's attention. 'Why would Nabiki want to talk to me if I ain't gonna have to pay her?' Ranma thought. 'May as well find out.' Leaving the change of clothes on her bedding to grab later, Ranma followed Nabiki to her room.

As they entered her room, Nabiki sat on her bed, and gestured for Ranma to take a seat at her desk. "Ranma, you know I have no issue giving people problems if it means making me money." Nabiki paused until Ranma nodded hesitantly, not wanting to anger her when she was acting this oddly. "That said, I won't be stingy when someone's life is on the line."

Ranma bolted up in shock. Thinking of the person that she usually had to save, Ranma exclaimed, "What!? Is Akane in danger again?"

"Calm down, Saotome, this has nothing to do with my sister." Nabiki said calmly. 'At least, not directly,' she thought before continuing. "I'm talking about you, and the Seppuku Contract your mother carries."

"Oh," Ranma said lamely, calm again, now that she knew what the conversation was about... somewhat. "What about it?"

"We both know your mother will never consider you a Man Amongst Men while you have the curse, and I believe you still have no solid plans to get it cured." Nabiki started, to which Ranma nodded hesitantly, and hung her head. "Well, earlier today, I talked to your mother and found out a few things, as well as getting to read the contract a bit more closely than when she first told us about it."

"Why does that matter?" Ranma asked. "We already knew what it said, didn't we?"

"Not quite," Nabiki countered. "What we knew was the contract's intended meaning. However, there is usually more than one way to fulfill an agreement, and after reading it... I know how you can complete that contract without even needing to remove your curse."

"What? Really?" Ranma said, excited at the prospect of being free of the threat of seppuku. However, Ranma curbed her excitement when she realized who she was dealing with. "Wait, how much is this going to cost me?"

"I told you, didn't I, Saotome?" Nabiki said while shaking her head. "Money's not as important when someone's life is on the line. Believe or not, Saotome, I don't plan to charge you for my help on this."

Ranma smiled widely at that. "Gee, thanks Nabiki! I guess you're not as bad as I thought!"

'Not as bad as you though!?' Nabiki thought with her eye twitching in annoyance. She wasn't annoyed so much by Ranma thinking that of her, so much as saying it to her face. "Although, in exchange for my help, I'm sure you wouldn't mind doing a few favors for me, right?"

"Uh, I supposed that's fair," Ranma said warily, while she thought, 'Not surprising I suppose. She wouldn't be Nabiki if she didn't get something out of it.' She asked Nabiki, "What d'ya need?"

"Hmm," Nabiki pretended to think about it a few moments before saying, "To be honest, most of what I need done is part a larger endeavor, so they need to be done at the right time. The same is actually true for what needs to be done to fulfill the contract with your mother." Nabiki grinned before continuing. "How about we make a deal? I know what you need to do to fulfill the contract, but it's a bit complicated. I could try to explain it to you, but I'm not sure you would understand all of it." Nabiki was lying through her teeth about the complexity of what needed to be done, but she needed a reason not to explain it just yet.

"Well, a load of good that does me!" Ranma said in annoyance, while thinking, 'I know Nabiki's smarter than me, but I don't have to like it being rubbed in like that!'

"Now, now, Saotome, this is exactly why I offered to help." Nabiki said. "I could tell, you, but you might make a mistake that could literally get you killed. You know I'm less likely to overlook something. So, why not let me be the brains, and you be the brawn, for lack of a better word." Seeing that she had the redhead's attention, Nabiki continued. "We should probably need about a month to fulfill your contract, or at least set things up so that it is as good as done, and what I need done should be able to be done within that time as well. So, what I propose is this; For the next month, you do what I say, and I'll make sure the Seppuku Contract gets fulfilled."

Ranma did want to take care of the contract, but she didn't forget that she was dealing with Nabiki. "How do I know this ain't just a trick to get me to do what ya want?"

"What, isn't my word good enough?" Nabiki said innocently. Receiving a flat stare of disbelief, she frowned as she thought, 'I really HAD hoped that would work. Good thing I always have a back-up plan.' Continuing on, she said, "I suppose I should offer some collateral." Seeing Ranma's confused expression at the last word, Nabiki sighed and explained. "I mean, offer something as incentive to keep my promise. So, if I fail to hold up my side of the bargain, I will forget all the yen you currently owe me." 'I didn't want to do this,' Nabiki thought with a mental grimace, 'but if my plan succeeds, what I'm risking will be chump change compared to what I stand to gain.'

Ranma was stunned by her offer. 'Nabiki _takes_ money, she doesn't _offer_ it!' Ranma thought. 'If she's willing to put money on the line, she must really be serious about helping me.' "Nabiki, sorry I doubted ya." Ranma said. Thinking for a moment, she continued. "Just for a month, right?"

"That's right," Nabiki said with a nod. "At that point, even if your mother hasn't declared the contract fulfilled, everything should be set up so that you can easily finish it yourself. So, do we have a deal?"

Ranma nodded back, "Deal." Ranma paused for a moment before continuing. "Uh, is there anything else? 'Cause otherwise, I wanna go shower and change back."

"About that," Nabiki said, her friendly smile replaced by her usual grin. "Starting tomorrow, I want you not to change back to a guy anymore. If some else prompts you to do so, like your parents or my father, then go ahead and do so, but I want you to stay in your cursed form as much as you can."

"Wah? But that's-!" Ranma started, only to be interrupted.

"Believe it or not, Saotome, it is part of what needs to be done in order to keep my side of our little deal." Nabiki said firmly.

Ranma sighed before responding. "Fine, but can I at least change back tonight?"

"Of course, I did say 'starting tomorrow', didn't I?" Nabiki said, before sweatdropping as Ranma zipped out of the room, not wanting Nabiki to make her do anything else. Nabiki shrugged before getting up herself. Thinking aloud, she said, "Now I just need to get the other part of the plan."

* * *

A few hours later found 'P-chan' startled from his sleep by suddenly being lifted into the air by the bandana around his neck. Thinking it was Ranma trying something again, he twisted around to try and bite the hand holding him.

Before he could manage it, though, a voice that was definitely not Ranma's spoke up. "Bite me, and I tell my oblivious little sister why her 'pet' is so scared of hot water."

Freezing up at that, Ryoga let his eyes adjust as he was carried from the room, and saw that the person carrying him was actually Nabiki. 'Why is Nabiki getting me in the middle of the night?' Ryoga thought. 'And what she just said, does she know about my curse?'

While he was thinking this, Nabiki carried him to her room, and set him down on her desk. Turning away, she said, "We need to talk. Let me know when you're presentable."

Turning his head, Ryoga saw that there was also a kettle of what he presumed was hot water on the desk, as well as a set of clothes. He briefly considered trying to escape, but considering the fact that the clothes were _his_, her earlier threat obviously wasn't just a guess.

Quickly changing back to his human form and getting dressed, He nervously said, "Er, I'm changed."

Turning back, Nabiki nodded and spoke. "Good, as I said, we need to talk. You see, I need your help with something, and If you don't want me to tell Akane the truth about 'P-chan', then you'll cooperate."

Ryoga swallowed nervously. Ranma knowing his secret was one thing. For all of his rival's faults, Ryoga knew Ranma would keep his word not to tell Akane. Nabiki was another issue, but he also knew that when she made a deal, she honored it. The question was... "What do you want me to do?"

"Well," Nabiki said with a grin, "do you remember awhile back, when you got lonely enough to use the Koi Rod on Ranma?"

Indignantly, Ryoga grumbled, "It's not like I meant to use it on _him_." Ryoga was too preoccupied with memories of that event to notice Nabiki's surprised expression before she schooled her face to a more neutral one.

Nabiki's thoughts were flying a mile-a-minute at his statement. 'Wait, WHAT!? I thought you were interested in Ranma's girl side! Don't tell me you really did fall for all of Sotome's pathetic disguises? Damn, damn, damn! If you weren't trying to use the rod on Ranma, then who-?' Nabiki calmed down as she realized what must have happened. 'Fine, I guess I'll just have to do the same with you as with Ranma. Damn, this will be harder without you cooperating...'

To Ryoga, she bluffed, "I thought that might be the case. You were really aiming for Akane, weren't you?" The way Ryoga stiffened and sputtered at the accusation was all the confirmation she needed. "Ryoga, I think we both know that if I wanted, Akane would never talk to you again. Lucky for you, I'm more interested in something else. In exchange for me not telling Akane about 'P-chan' or the intended target of the Koi Rod, you are going to do what I tell you for the next month, understand?"

Having to manipulate Ryoga as well would make her endeavor much more difficult, but Nabiki always had a back-up plan. Luckily, she already had a few people in mind that would be happy to see her plan succeed for their own reasons.

* * *

**AN:** Whoo, that ended up longer than I expected, but I am sure you are all happy about that! Like I said at the beginning, this is not the most entertaining chapter, but quite necessary for reasons that should be obvious at this point.

I already have several ideas for events that will occur over the following month in the story, including some magical artifacts/potions/other random magical things like what you would see in canon. If you have suggestions for things that you would like to see appear, let me know, because a lot can happen in a month.

Hope you enjoyed!


	3. The Trap, Part 1

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** Hello again, everyone! Originally, this was only supposed to be a side project, while I worked on 'Just Friends?', but I keep getting ideas for it, so here is another chapter for you all!

Pairing note: One reviewer, Chaosqueen, left a review asking about the pairing. I know I hate it when an author is not specific about that, and I end up wasting time reading a story, only to find the main pairing to be one I can't stand. So, I just want to clear up any doubts now. This was always meant to be, and always will be a Ryoga x Ranma-chan story. Call me weird, but I have never been able to see Nabiki in a romantic pairing with anyone, so I will likely never write a story with her in a pairing at all. The only exception would be with Kuno, but then she would just be after his money. I'm starting to ramble now, so I will stop, and let you get to the story.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 3: The Trap, Part 1

Ryoga had spent many nights at the Tendo home, but usually he slept in Akane's room as P-chan. This time, however, he found himself waking up as a human on the Tendo's roof. Ryoga sighed as the events of last night came back to him. 'What does Nabiki want me to do? She never really explained.' Ryoga thought. 'I can understand her telling not to sleep in Akane's room, but why did she tell me NOT to leave Nerima? She also told me to try and stay in human form, but I would have done that anyway...'

He pondered the situation for a few more minutes, before he heard a ladder come to rest lightly against the edge of the roof. A moment later, Nabiki came into view. "Have a good night's sleep Hibiki?" She asked, a smile on her face.

"I've had worse..." Ryoga said cautiously, not sure what else to say.

"That's good." Nabiki responded, sounding far too cheerful. "Kasumi's almost done with breakfast. If you can manage to find the front door, I'm sure you could join us." The smile changed to her usual smirk as she continued, "And in case there was any doubt, that wasn't a suggestion. Pretend that you just got here, and I think it goes without saying, but don't tell anyone about our little deal." Seeing Ryoga nod, she left.

Ryoga frowned as Nabiki disappeared back down the ladder, but did not say anything. As he got up and leapt down from the roof, he thought, 'It's not too bad so far, at least. I don't like having to do what she says, but she hasn't really asked me to do anything that bad yet. I _did_ mean what I said about a dry roof not being the worst place I've slept...' Ryoga shuddered as he remembered some of the worst places he had spent the night during his travels.

Walking around the house to the front door, Ryoga made sure to keep one hand on the wall to keep from wandering off. It was one of the tricks he had learned over the years to keep himself from leaving a building before he meant to. Of course, it only worked when he was paying attention, so it wasn't foolproof.

Reaching the front door, he knocked as if he had just arrived. A few moments later, Kasumi answered the door. "Hello, Ryoga," she said with a smile. "You're certainly here early today. Would you like to join us for breakfast?"

"Thanks, I'd love to." Ryoga said honestly. Even if this was a part of whatever Nabiki was having him do, only a fool would pass up the chance to enjoy Kasumi's cooking.

Following her inside, Kasumi led him to the dining room, where Nabiki and Soun were already sitting. Ryoga was thinking to ask where Ranma and Akane were, when the answer came in the form of Akane's voice shouting "Wake up, Ranma! We're going to be late!" from upstairs, accompanied by a faint splash of water. Akane quickly came down the stairs, followed by a female Ranma a few minutes after.

Akane gave Ryoga a smile when she saw him, but Ranma just sped to the table and started eating, as her father was already doing. Ryoga and the Tendos began eating at a more sedate pace, when Ranma's attention suddenly snapped from her food to the Lost Boy. "Wait, Ryoga!? When did you get here?" To herself, Ranma thought, 'I saw 'P-chan' last night, but he usually doesn't change back without a reason if Akane's home, so what's up?'

"Shut up, Saotome!" Ryoga snapped, annoyed that Ranma did not even notice him right away. "I just got here a bit earlier than usual."

"Yeah, well, if you're here ta fight me, I'm ready any time!" Ranma bragged, while defending her food from Genma's chopsticks.

"Ranma, quit picking on Ryoga!" Akane chided. "Besides, we need to leave soon."

Ryoga was surprised when it was Kasumi that spoke up next. "Why don't you go with them, Ryoga? We wouldn't want you to miss school just because you came to visit."

Nabiki grinned at that. She had been about to suggest that herself, as things would go more smoothly if she could keep an eye on both of the pair she had plans for. Her grin widened when Akane spoke up, "That's a great idea! After all, we don't want you starting to talk like Ranma, just because you travel so much."

Ignoring Ranma's indignant "Hey!", Ryoga was about to immediately agree since Akane liked the idea, when he remembered who was responsible for him being there in the first place. Hesitating, he glanced at Nabiki, only to smile when he saw her give him a surreptitious nod. To Akane he said, "I-I'd love to go to school with you!"

Ranma just snorted and rolled her eyes, before going back to eating. With everything set up here, Nabiki left for school, and Ranma, Ryoga, and Akane, followed shortly after.

As they ran to school, Akane and Ryoga used the ground, while Ranma took her usual route along the top of the fence. Glancing up at the redhead, Akane said, "Ranma, we don't have time to stop by Dr. Tofu's today. You should have changed back before we left!"

Ranma, who had stayed as a girl because of the deal she made with Nabiki the night before, shot back, "You're the one who splashed me in the first place, ya uncute tomboy!"

Before Akane could respond, Ryoga jumped up onto the fence and took a swing at Ranma, while crying, "Saotome, how dare you talk to Akane like that!"

Ranma jumped over the blow, and landed back on the fence. Continuing to run, only now facing backwards, Ranma taunted, "Haha, missed me, P-chan!"

As the two fought their way to school, Akane chased after, calling out, "Stop fighting you two!"

* * *

Nabiki watched from a second story window as the trio arrived at school. As they did, she heard a voice from behind her. "Did you need us, Boss?"

Nabiki turned around to see two of her classmates, Kogane and Chikara. Nabiki liked to think of these two as her Assistants, as they helped her run the various operations she managed, and each got a (smaller) share of the profits in exchange. She also knew that most of the rest of the school thought of these two as her henchmen. Nabiki saw no reason to correct them.

Smiling at the two, Nabiki said, "Yes. I am officially closing the betting pool on who Ranma will end up with."

Kogane was confused by this. "But didn't you say we needed to find a way to get people to change their bets away from Akane? Or are you worried more people are going to bet on her?"

"On the contrary," Nabiki said quietly to make sure none of their other classmates overheard. "I want to make sure that no one switches their bet away from my _dear_ little sister."

Chikara leaned forward and asked eagerly, "Do you have a plan?"

"Girls, I always have a plan," Nabiki stated with her trademark smirk. "However, it is going to take up most of my attention for the next month, so I need you two to handle our normal operations in the mean time. Can you handle things by yourselves for that long?"

To anyone else, Nabiki's words may have sounded condescending, but both the girls she was talking to knew that no one but Nabiki had the right combination of cunning and luck to pull off some of the things she had done. The middle Tendo sister was a regular karmic Houdini!

Exchanging a glance, the pair turned back to Nabiki with looks of determination, and said in unison, "You can count on us, Boss!"

Nabiki clapped the girls on the shoulders as she said, "I knew I could count on you." Before more could be said, the bell rang for class to start, and the three went to their seats. Even as Nabiki sat down, her mind was already at work on the next step necessary for her plan. 'Sorry girls, I will need some help for this, but it's not something ordinary schoolgirls will be able to do for me. Fortunately, I have plenty of options, but I think two in particular will be useful. One could show up to steal panties at any time, so I'll just have to keep an ear out for scream from the girl's locker room. As for the other... I think I'll order ramen for lunch.'

* * *

Lunchtime came around, and Nabiki used a nearby payphone to put a call though to the Nekohanten. She heard Cologne's voice answer the call. "Hello, this is the Nekohanten. How can I help you today?"

"Hello, this is Nabiki," The girl said.

"Ah, more information to sell to my great-granddaughter perhaps?" The Amazon Elder queried.

Nabiki hesitated for a moment. 'I have to get this just perfect,' she thought. 'Of all the people in Nerima, Cologne is the biggest threat to any given plan I may come up with. Sometimes it's nice to have someone actually give me a challenge for a change, but the cost of failure is too great this time.'

"Nothing comes to mind at the moment," Nabiki said to cover her pause. "I actually just called to get some lunch today."

"Very well, then," Cologne replied with a slight tinge of disappointment in her voice. After taking the girl's order, she said, "Alright, Shampoo should be there with it in a few minutes."

"Actually," Nabiki cut in before Cologne could hang up. "I'd rather have a day off from listening to my sister complain about her. Would you mind having Mousse bring it over instead."

There was a brief pause before cologne said, "...Very well. He should be there shortly." There was no mistaking the suspicion in the old woman's voice.

As Nabiki hung up the phone, she frowned. 'This could be bad,' she thought, 'If Cologne decides to interfere too soon, it could ruin everything. I'll have to find some way to deal with her.' With that thought in mind, she headed to the front of the school to wait for Mousse.

True to Cologne's word, Nabiki saw him arriving on a bike a few minutes later. Fortunately, he was wearing his glasses, so he quickly pulled up next to her. Taking her payment and handing her the ramen, Mousse said, "Cologne mentioned that you requested I bring the delivery rather than Shampoo. You have my thanks for not giving Saotome even more opportunity to worm his way into her heart."

Nabiki grinned at the opening presented to her. "Speaking of Saotome, I have a proposition for you. How would you like to help me make sure Ranma NEVER marries Shampoo?"

Mousse had been starting to get back on his bicycle, but froze as her words registered. Whipping around to face her, he said, "Can you really do that, Tendo?"

"If the endeavor I am currently working on succeeds, then Ranma will be married to someone else, and Shampoo will be more likely to kill Ranma, than marry him." Seeing the smile spread across Mousse's face, Nabiki continued. "Of course, it would be significantly easier if I had someone to help me. Perhaps someone with access to ancient Chinese magical artifacts and potions?"

Mousse frowned at that. "As much as I like the sound of that, it isn't easy for me to get access to that monkey mummy's artifacts without getting caught." Mousse shook his head. "Besides, if Ranma marries a different girl, Shampoo is required by our laws to kill her."

Nabiki suspected as much, but that didn't affect her plan as much as the boy thought. "Oh, I know you can be creative when it comes to getting your hands on magic. And as for the rest..." Nabiki paused as she noticed her ramen was starting to cool. "Actually, my food is getting cold, and I'm sure Cologne wouldn't be too happy if you don't get back soon. Tell you what, meet me at my family's dojo tonight at midnight, and I'll explain everything."

Mousse nodded and got back on his bike. "Very well. Tonight, then."

As he headed off, Nabiki went to find a good place to eat her food, thinking, 'Now I just need to talk to Happosai, and wait for tonight.'

* * *

**AN:** Wait, that's it? Only for the moment. Some of you may have noticed that the chapter title had 'Part 1' at the end. I had planned to cover more in this chapter, but decided to split it in half in order to keep the chapter lengths consistent, and get you something sooner. Hope you liked it!

Like the consistent length? Think I should have just gone for a bigger chapter? Let me know!


	4. The Trap, Part 2

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** Hello all! Here is the second part you have been waiting for! Got a bit delayed over some worrying reviews, but then some encouraging reviews and reading a hilarious fic gave me the motivation get this finished up. So, thanks to all who took the time to review. Yes, thanks for the concerning reviews as well, as they brought something to my attention that I needed to address.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 4: The Trap, Part 2

Few afternoons at Furinkan high could be considered quiet, but that day was one. There had been a brief moment of excitement as Kuno chased his 'pigtailed girl' out of the school, and Akane and Ryoga chased after, but any noise was soon reduced to a hushed whisper, as an ominous presence swept out of one of the classrooms. Students that were smiling and chatting happily moments before grew fearful at the terrifying sight before them, their conversations reduced to hushed whispers. Even those that knew martial arts dared not approach the source of their unease, and despite the packed hallways, the students still managed to part and give room, so as not to draw down the wrath of Nabiki Tendo.

'Where the Hell is he?' Nabiki thought to herself, so wrapped up in her own thoughts that the normally perceptive girl failed to notice the effect her foul mood was having on those around her. 'We've had nice weather, there have been plenty of teenage girls in bloomers outside throughout the day, and Ranma hasn't changed back to a guy once, yet there hasn't been hide nor hair of Happosai at all! If he decided to go on one of his trips today of all days, I'm going to have to find someone else to help me, and who knows what useful tricks he has up his sleeves, that I won't be able to make use of!?'

Leaving the school, Nabiki hoped there was some other explanation for the old pervert's absence, failing to notice the collective sigh of relief from the students, as the scowling girl left them behind.

Arriving back at her home, Nabiki was greeted by the sounds of combat coming from the back yard. Judging by the shouts of anger and taunting comments, it was obviously Ranma and Ryoga fighting. 'I'll have to do something about that later,' Nabiki thought as she entered the front door, 'but first, I have an old man to find.' However, her quest was short lived, as walking into the living room answered the question about where he had been.

"And welcome back to the Victoria's Secret 10 hour special!" The television announced as she entered the room, and found Happosai sitting in front of it, eyes glued to the screen of scantily clad women on a stage. Heading to the kitchen, Nabiki found Kasumi there, as expected... Unfortunately, Akane was there as well, doing something that no one but her would likely call 'cooking'. Luckily, Kasumi was preparing some dishes as well, so Nabiki knew that at least some of dinner would be edible.

Turning to her older sister, Nabiki asked, "Hey Kasumi, has Happosai been watching TV all day?"

Glancing over her shoulder, Kasumi responded. "Welcome home Nabiki. Grandfather Happosai started watching right after you left for school, so he should be finished soon."

"That's good to hear," Nabiki said. "That's not exactly the kind of thing I want to watch while eating dinner." With that, she headed back out to the living room.

Despite what she had said, though, Nabiki stopped when she entered the living room. She needed to let Happosai know what she needed, with risking her sisters or father overhearing and getting curious. Thinking quickly, she came up with an idea. Nabiki headed up to her room, and took out a piece of paper and a pen. 'Sometimes the most obvious solutions _are_ the best.' Nabiki thought with a grin, as she wrote out the note.

Coming back down the stairs, Nabiki made sure Happosai was sufficiently enthralled by the television, before tucking the note into the back of his collar. Then, she headed back up to her room to wait for dinner.

* * *

Happosai did not stop smiling all through dinner. As he ate, his body moved on its own, as his mind replayed the lacy heaven he had watched that day. 'Just a shame they used such skinny models. I prefer lingerie by itself, but if there's a girl modeling it, it's much better if she has a bit of muscle on her. Still, at least they had nice boobs.' Happosai thought, his life of martial arts reflected by his perverted tastes.

Happosai's thoughts continued on this vein as he finished eating and headed towards his room to enjoy some time with his private collecting of 'lacy darlings'. However, as he walked, he felt something tickling the back of his neck. Reaching back, he found a folded piece of paper.

Sitting on a sack of 'loot' that he had yet to sort through, Happosai unfolded the paper, and read what was written upon it.

_Happosai,_

_Meet me in the dojo at midnight. If you want to see a certain busty redhead around more often, it will be worth your while._

_-N_

Happosai stroked his chin as he pondered the note. 'It was only signed 'N', but it's pretty obvious who left me this note. Still, if anyone else were to find it, she could still claim innocence if she needed to. Shame Nabiki doesn't practice the Art. She would make a much better heir to Anything Goes than Akane, maybe even better than Ranma, if she applied herself. Ah well, no point in thinking about missed possibilities. May as well go see what she wants, it sounds like it could prove entertaining.'

Glancing at the time, Happosai said to himself, "Still got a few hours to kill first, though. May as well get started on my latest haul!" Without further ado, Happosai got up, and started sorting through the sack full of his latest thefts.

* * *

It was quiet at the Tendo's dojo as midnight struck. Anyone watching may have seen a figure slipping through the moonlight to enter the building. As Nabiki closed the door behind her, a voice called out quietly from within. "I thought it was you who left me the note. What did you want to talk about, m'dear?"

Turning around, Nabiki saw Happosai sitting at the center of the dojo, smoking his pipe. "Good you're already here," Nabiki said with her trademark grin. "Sorry, but you'll have to wait a few minutes. There's one more coming, and I don't like to repeat myself."

Happosai raised an eyebrow at that curiously, but nodded in acceptance. A couple minutes later, the door opened again, and Mousse walked in. He was surprised to see Happosai there, but Nabiki spoke up before he could say anything. "You're late, Mousse. Never mind, though, let's get down to business."

Nabiki walked to the back of the room, and then turned to face the other two. "Now, I know, I hinted at why I needed you here, but I haven't told either of you any details yet. The reason for this is, that in order for what I have planned to work, certain people have to remain unaware of what is going on. Therefore, I'll need both of you to swear on your honor," 'for what it's worth from you two,' Nabiki thought to herself before continuing, "that what is said here will not reach the ears of anyone else without my permission. Agreed?"

Mousse and Happosai glanced at each other. Both were already curious from the hints she had dropped earlier, when inviting them, and seeing who else she had invited had only increased that curiosity. Happosai spoke up first. "I think I speak for both of us when I say I'm not about to leave. My lips are sealed!"

"Yes, I'm quite intrigued to hear your offer myself." Mousse said with a nod. "I won't speak of this to anyone."

Nabiki nodded back, and sighed. Steeling herself, she prepared to do something she hated; telling someone else her plans. "Alright, where to start? I believe you both know about the betting pool I have going, concerning who Ranma will end up with?" Nabiki paused to let them confirm this.

Happosai nodded, but Mousse spoke up with a frown. "I know of it. I take it this is some scheme to get him and your sister together? I already explained earlier why that was a bad idea, and-"

Nabiki cut him off with a scowl. "Believe it or not, Mousse, I'd rather see Saotome marry Shampoo then my _dear_ little sister right now." Both of the males were caught off guard by that declaration, but Nabiki continued before either could comment. "Akane dragged this out too long, and too many people bet on her. If Ranma marries her now, I lose money." Nabiki's scowl darkened, and she snarled. "And nobody makes Nabiki Tendo lose money!"

Mousse and Happosai were speechless. This was a side of Nabiki neither one had seen before. Nabiki was the calm and collected Ice Queen of Nerima. Even if something surprised her enough for it too show, she always regained her cool almost immediately. Seeing her visibly angry was rather unsettling.

Noticing their expressions, Nabiki took a deep breath to calm herself. 'Damn,' Nabiki thought. 'This whole situation must be stressing me out more than I thought. Calm down, Nabiki. You just have to convince these two to help you, and deal with the rest as it comes.'

Out loud, Nabiki went on. "Despite what I said, I do not want to see Saotome end up with Shampoo, or Ukyo either. I would still make money if I did, but the bets on them are still significant. I want to ensure that Ranma falls for someone nobody has bet on."

Happosai cut in here. "I can see why the Amazon boy here would be interested, then, but Why should I help?"

Nabiki's grin returned, when she was presented with that opening. "Because practically every girl in Ranma's life has been bet on, myself included. Which means..." She trailed off meaningfully, and let them put it together.

It was Mousse that spoke up first, a smirk sliding onto his face as he began to understand. "Which means that you want Saotome to fall for a guy, and in that case the Amazon's laws about him marrying an outsider girl wouldn't apply."

Happosai smiled as well, before speaking himself. "And considering Ranma's opinion of guys, the only way that would happen would be if he embraced his curse!"

"Exactly!" Nabiki said happily, her mood significantly improved. She hadn't just picked these two because of their access to magic and potions. If that were the case, she would have included Kodachi as well. She had picked these two, because, when they were distracted by their obsessions, they were probably the smartest ones that would be willing to help... Not that that was saying much, considering the alternatives, but she would take what she could get.

Mousse had a concern to voice, though. "If you asked me here to try and woo Saotome, I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere."

Nabiki scoffed at that. "If you tried it, you'd probably have about as much success as Kuno. I plan to use someone Ranma has already shown interest in. The only guy Ranma has intentionally turned into a girl before meeting. The guy Ranma has worn dresses for more than any other." Determined to drive her point home, Nabiki decided to bring up an event both of the others had been involved in. "Not to mention the only guy to come to Ranma's defense, when he was under the effects of the Ultimate Weakness Moxibustion."

Mousse gasped as he remembered. "Hibiki!" He cried.

Happosai took a puff on his pipe before saying, "That's an awfully ambitious plan, considering how much the two fight. I take it that's why you need us to help."

Mousse nodded, and voiced a query. "So, what do you need? A way to lock Saotome's curse, or maybe a love potion for the two?"

"NO!" Nabiki cried. "Don't even think about love potions or any sort of mind control!"

"Oh? I never thought you'd be one to let something like morals stop you." Happosai said with a raised eyebrow.

The mercenary girl just rolled her eyes. "Morals have nothing to do with it! Think about all the times people have tried to use potions, drugs, or magical artifact to make Ranma fall in love. Now tell me; how many of those attempts worked?" Seeing comprehension dawning on their faces, Nabiki pushed her point home. "Sure some of them like the Red Thread of Fate Shampoo used may have worked temporarily, but Ranma _always_ end up breaking free, or getting cured, or something. Unlike some people, I learn from others mistakes, and history shows that using some love potion is a sure fire way to make my plan fail."

Nabiki started to pace as she continued to explain. "If there is one trait Ranma and Ryoga share, it is that the harder you push them, the harder they push back. My father and Genma made that mistake, trying to force Ranma to marry Akane. Even if Ranma would have thought about it before, when they took away his choice on the matter, he tried to resist. Ryoga's the same, only with more property damage. If we used a love potion on them, and then the effects were removed, it would get rid of any chance of success."

Stopping her pacing, she turned to face the two. "The only way for this to work, is to make Ranma and Ryoga _want_ it to happen. THAT is why I need your help. I can do a lot with simply manipulating events in my favor, but I know you both have quite impressive collections of magic to call on. Love potions and mind control are out of the question, but I'm sure you two have some subtler tricks to call on. And even if you don't, you have the martial arts skills I don't, and those will come in handy later."

Nabiki gave them a few moments to absorb what she had just gone over. Happosai nodded with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "I think I have a few ideas that could do the trick. Even if this doesn't work, it certainly sounds like I'll have fun trying!"

Mousse nodded as well. "I suppose it's a good thing Shampoo and Cologne haven't realized that, or else they may have actually manage to ensnare Ranma with something. If this works, there's no way Shampoo will be able to continue trying to marry Ranma. You have my full support, Tendo."

A Cheshire grin spread across Nabiki's face, as she looked at her new co-conspirators. "Excellent!" She said. "Now I have things set up so that we have a month to get this done. There are a few things coming up this month that should help us, and combined with deals I made with our targets, a month should be long enough. Now then, let's go over the details of this little trap, shall we?"

* * *

**AN:** There we go! This is really the last of the 'introductory chapters'. After this, there should be more Ryoga x Ranma-chan showing up. Hope this chapter addressed the concerns some people brought up!

What ideas are swirling around Happosai's twisted mind? What are the upcoming events Nabiki plans to twist in her favor? Find out on future chapters of Matchmaking!


	5. The Beginning

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** Hello again! I can't remember the last time I have been this motivated to write a story for this long. So, you guys get another chapter! Not much else to say besides 'assumptions make excuses easy'.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 5: The Beginning

"It's time to get up, Boy!"

While Ranma was well accustomed to waking up to such a cry, it left Ryoga confused as he awoke. Sitting up and looking around the room, he saw Genma jumping out the window, leaving him alone in the Tendo's guest room. A splashing sound from outside, accompanied by a cry of "Damn you, Pop!" told him what happened to Ranma.

Ryoga stretched, as he stood up and started getting ready for the day. The night before, Akane had invited him to spend the night, and thus he had slept in the guest room with the Saotomes. Surprisingly, he got less sleep than he had on the roof. For someone used to falling asleep to the sounds of nature, the snores of Ranma's father had kept him awake for quite a while.

Dressing quickly in his usual outfit, Ryoga quickly left the room, in order to give himself plenty of time to find the living room before breakfast. However, the moment he left the guest room, he heard the last voice he wanted to, coming from beside him.

"Good morning, Hibiki. I need to have a word with you before you head downstairs." Nabiki said, glad that her decision to wait for him had paid off. She had made sure to stay by the door, so that she could hear if he followed the Saotomes out the window, but that turned out not to be the case, as luck was on her side once more.

Turning around in surprise, Ryoga asked warily, "What do you want, Nabiki?"

"It's about our little deal." Nabiki said. "I have something I want you to do for me today." Not giving him time to respond, she went on. "If Kuno goes after 'his pigtailed girl' during this next month, I want you to step in and take care of him yourself."

Ryoga blinked in surprise. 'I don't know what I was expecting,' he thought, 'but it sure as Hell wasn't that.' Once he got over his surprise, he said in annoyance, "Why should I do something that helps Saotome?"

Nabiki narrowed her eyes at the Lost Boy. "You'll do it because I told you to. Or do you intend to go back on our agreement?"

Ryoga gritted his teeth, wanting to tell her what he really thought of their 'agreement', but he knew that his relationship with Akane was on the line. Heaving a sigh, he said, "Fine."

"Good boy." Nabiki said with a grin.

Resisting the urge to growl over being talked to like a dog, Ryoga brought up an issue with what she asked him to do. "But what should I say when people ask why I'm doing it? You know Ranma and Akane will want to know, at least, and you said not to tell anyone..."

"Your problem, not mine." Nabiki said with a shrug. Seeing his glare, that told her he was less that satisfied with her response, she went on. "Alright, fine. Just tell them that you've got your own reasons for doing it, and leave it at that. Chances are, anyone curious enough to try and find out more will come to me, and then I'll deal with it."

A look of realization spread across Ryoga's face. "Oh, you want me to get people curious, so that you can charge them for information."

That was not Nabiki's reason at all, but she saw no reason to correct him just yet. "Well, if we have that settled, how about we head down to breakfast?" She turned to leave, only to say one last things over her shoulder. "Oh, and you only have to do it while Ranma is in his cursed form. If Kuno attacks Ranma in his male form, you can do whatever you want."

Ryoga nodded and followed her down stairs, wondering to himself, 'Why doesn't she want me to help Ranma as a guy? Wouldn't she make just as much money?'

* * *

Once more, Ranma, Ryoga, and Akane arrived at school, with Ryoga trying to smash the redhead's face in. The trip to school had gone much as the previous morning had, with Akane getting annoyed at Ranma being in his cursed form, Ranma making a rude comment back, and Ryoga attacking Ranma on Akane's behalf. As such, Ryoga and Ranma had fought their way to school, Ranma entering the school grounds by backflipping away from one of Ryoga's attacks.

"Heh, you'll have ta do better than that ta get me, Bacon Breath." Ranma said with a smirk.

Ryoga charged forward, intending to wipe said smirk off her face, but pulled up short, in order to avoid the bokken(1) that came down in his path. Ranma and Ryoga both shifted their attention to the one holding it, Ryoga glaring and Ranma groaning.

"How dare you attempt to strike the fair Pigtailed Girl, foul wretch! I, the great Tatewaki Kuno, shall defend her honor!" Kuno declared, turning to face Ryoga squarely.

Ranma was about to kick the kendoist out of the way and resume the fight herself, when Akane interrupted. "We don't have time for this! If we're late again, we'll get detention, and if Ryoga's late for both his first days here, who knows what the Principal will come up with!" Turning to Kuno, she said. "Can't you leave this until later, Kuno-senpai?"

Kuno lowered his bokken for a moment as he thought, before pointing it at Ryoga's face. In his usual overdramatic tone, he said, "Very well! Since Miss Akane Tendo has pleaded for me to grant you a respite, I shall grant it! However, know that your reprieve shall be brief. I shall wait for you at this gate upon the cessation of our schooling. Should you manage to work up the courage to face me, cur, I shall defeat thee, and prove myself to the fair Pigtailed Girl once and for all!"

Ranma and Ryoga were both about to attack the foppish teen, when Akane grabbed both of them and started dragging them towards the school, saying, "Hurry up!"

Ranma glanced at her in confusion, asking, "What's up with you, Akane? Why not just let us kick Kuno's ass and be done with it?"

As they entered the school, though, Ranma and Ryoga noticed someone waiting in the doorway for the first time. It was Furinkan high's disciplinarian, Hinako Ninomiya. After passing the strict teacher, Akane said, "You two were too busy fighting, to notice, but Hinako-sensei was watching to make sure none of you actually fought on school grounds. If she'd drained you two, we'd definitely have been late!"

Neither of the other two were eager to feel the teacher's ki draining technique again, and mentally agreed that dealing with Kuno later was a good idea after all.

* * *

When lunch time came around, Akane took Ryoga to the roof, so that they could put off dealing with Kuno until after school. Taking out the bento Kasumi had made for her, Akane asked, "Do you have a bento(2), Ryoga? If not, I can share some of mine."

Telling at a glance that it was Kasumi's cooking, Ryoga was about to happily accept the generous offer, when another voice called out. "Heads up, Pig Breath!"

Years of practicing martial arts and travelling through dangerous wilderness meant Ryoga's reflexes were more than good enough to catch the object that flew at him. Glaring at the one who threw it, he yelled, "What the Hell, Saotome!"

The redhead shrugged as she walked towards them, saying, "Just thought you'd be hungry, Pig Brain. 'Course, if ya don't want it, I'll be happy ta eat it for ya."

This caused Ryoga to look at the object he had caught for the first time, revealing it to be a container similar to one the Saotome was still holding. Ranma sat down near them, and started digging into her own lunch. Opening his, Ryoga started to eat as well, but noticed something was off pretty quickly. "That's odd..." he mumbled.

"What's wrong?" Akane asked, as she looked up from her own food.

"It's the food," Ryoga said. "I mean, it's still good, but it's not up to Kasumi's usual standard."

Ranma glared at him and said, "Well, excuse me for not being a five-star chef!"

Ryoga and Akane both blinked in surprise, before Akane said jealously, "_You_ cooked it? It can't be that good." Without bothering to ask for permission, she reached out her chopsticks and snapped up a bite from Ranma's lunch. Ignoring the redhead's indignant cry, Akane's eyes widened as she thought, 'It **is** good! Why is Ranma better than me at cooking!?'

Before she could voice her question, though, Ryoga did. "How did you get this good at cooking anyway?" Then the Lost Boy smirked as he continued, "Been spending too much time as a girl maybe?"

Ranma rolled her eyes at him and said, "It's not my fault. When I was pretending ta be Ranko, my mom insisted on giving me cooking lessons. Along with all the times Pops was too lazy ta cook on our training trip, and I got plenty of experience."

"Alright," Ryoga said, while Akane brooded over the reminder that there was yet another person better than her at cooking. There was one more question on his mind, though. "I get why you made one for yourself, but why did you make one for me?" Suddenly, an idea hit him. "Is this suppose to make up for the bread you stole from me in middle school? 'Cause it's going to take more than one lunch to make up for that."

"Uh, yeah, that's it. Plus, it helps out Kasumi, since she's already makin' lunches for Akane and Nabiki, so I suppose I can keep doing it 'til you manage ta get lost again." Ranma said. To herself, she thought, 'I wonder if that's the reason why Nabiki wanting me to make him lunch and try to keep him in town this month.' Nabiki had talked to her about those things before she went to bed the night before, but had failed to explain why. 'I mean, helping Kasumi out is always good, and I suppose if Ryoga and I are on better terms, she saves money on house repairs, if nothing else.'

Ryoga nodded silently as he kept eating. He was reluctant to admit it, but he really was enjoying the food Ranma made him. Plus, if Ranma was going to give him food, it would save him from spending money or being a burden on the Tendos. If Ranma kept this up for long enough, maybe he could forgive the whole bread issue. Besides, there were plenty of other things for him to be mad at his rival for, he could afford to let that one go.

With that resolved, they finished their lunch in silence, and went back to class.

* * *

After school, Kuno could be seen waiting at the gate, as promised. Ryoga went to stand in front of him, while Ranma and Akane watched from the side. Akane was confident Ryoga would beat Kuno, but wanted to stay to make sure he didn't get hurt. Ranma, on the other hand, did not even consider Ryoga losing. She just wanted to watch the swordsmen get beaten, and to make sure Ryoga didn't wander off afterwards.

Ryoga went to stand in front of Kuno, and waited for whatever corny speech he knew the kendoist was going to make. Kuno completely ignored him, however, in favor of turning his attention on the two (currently) girls nearby. "Ah, how my spirits soar that such beauties should be present to witness my glorious victory!" Moving towards Ranma, he continued. "Pigtailed Girl, fear not, for I shall defeat the scoundrel that attempted to lay his hands upon you. Please, spur me to swifter victory with a sign of your lo-"

Ranma raised her fist to knock Kuno backwards, but stopped when he was cut off before she could strike. Blinking in surprise at the red umbrella that had collided with the top of Kuno's head, she turned her head to the one holding it, and said in annoyance, "Hey, I can deal with him myself, Pig Brain!"

Kuno's head snapped up, and he glared at the Lost Boy as he spoke. "Foul wretch, do not think that I can be defeated by a sneak attack. How dare you interrupt my moment of love with the Pigtailed girl!"

Ryoga just glared back and said, "Hands off. Did you come to flirt, or fight?"

"Have at thee, cur!" Kuno cried as he raised his weapon.

As Kuno charged, and Ryoga met the incoming bokken with his umbrella, a thought crossed Ranma's mind. 'Why did Ryoga tell Kuno 'hands off'?'

* * *

(1): A bokken is a wooden sword, typically curved and sized similar to a katana.

(2): A bento is a Japanese lunchbox.

**AN:** There we go! Do you guys want me to write out the fight with Kuno next chapter, or should I just move on? Let me know!


	6. The Birthday

**Matchmaking (and Moneymaking)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma ½, then I would not have to be borrowing someone else's computer to type this****.**

**AN:** Hello, Minions! This chapter took a bit longer than expected to finish, but it also ended up longer than expected at over 3k words! While they do cover Christmas in Ranma ½ canon, they never show birthdays, so I figured, why not? Not to mention, it gave me a chance to hint at some things to come. See if you can spot what I mean...

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 6: The Birthday

"Geez, ya must be slacking, Pork Breath." Ranma said, as she, Akane, and Ryoga walked away from the school. "I can't believe ya took that long ta deal with Kuno!"

"Shut up! He must have been training a lot recently, that's all." Ryoga snapped back. As much as Ranma's comments annoyed him, he was even more frustrated at himself. Despite what he said, it was still embarrassing not to have taken care of the kendoist more quickly.

"Ranma, stop picking on Ryoga! He was helping you out by taking care of Kuno, after all." Akane chided the redhead.

This did nothing to deter Ranma, however. "Yeah, if Kuno gives him trouble, my teasing might just be too much for him." Ranma said, before she realized something. "Come ta think of it, why _did_ ya get in Kuno's way? I mean, it's nice not having him grab me, but I coulda taken care of him myself."

Remembering what Nabiki had told him, Ryoga simply told her, "I've got my reasons, Saotome."

Ranma raised an eyebrow at that, before shrugging it off with the thought, 'Kuno must of done something ta piss him off.' Out loud, she said, "Whatever. Just let me take care of him next time. _I_ won't take so long ta do it."

"Grr, shut it, Saotome!" Ryoga shouted, this time swinging his umbrella at her. Ranma easily ducked under the swing, letting the deceptively heavy object collide with a light post that happened to be behind her. However, both of them froze as a sharp cracking sound rang out, and Ranma was caught off guard as the upper half of Ryoga's umbrella fell, landing on her head.

Ryoga and Akane both stared dumbly at the broken umbrella shaft still in his hand, while Ranma sat rubbing her head and glaring at the other piece of it that now rested on the ground beside her. "Damn, I guess Kuno really has upped his training," Ranma grumbled. "'Cause after everything else ya've slammed that thing against, I doubt a lamppost woulda broke it."

Ryoga nodded silently. 'Kuno must have managed to crack it...' He thought sadly.

Noticing the aura of depression forming around him, Akane said, "Don't worry, Ryoga. I'm sure we can get you a new umbrella if you want." Seeing that it did little to lift his spirit, she went on. "Come on, let's get home and have dinner, and then we'll figure out what to do about it."

Ryoga nodded, still silent, and let Akane lead him off. Still rubbing her head where she got hit, Ranma stared after him in confusion. "What's up with him?" She mumbled. "It's just an umbrella, ain't it?" Getting back to her feet, Ranma was about to follow after them. Glancing down at the broken umbrella top that had been left behind, she considered leaving it herself. On impulse, however, she decided to bring it with her before heading back towards the dojo.

* * *

Akane was starting to get worried, as she led Ryoga into her family's living room. All the way back, he had kept staring at the broken shaft of his umbrella, and even though she tried to distract him with conversation, his responses seemed subdued.

Sitting down at the living room table with him, Akane said, "Don't worry, Ryoga. We can get you a new umbrella after school tomorrow."

Ryoga sighed dejectedly, before saying, "Thanks, Akane, but it just wouldn't be the same."

Curious about that, Akane asked, "I know it was really heavy, is that the problem?"

Ryoga shook his head. "That made it a great weapon and training tool, it's just... I got this umbrella on my twelfth birthday... and that was also the last time I saw my dad in person."

Akane gasped, and asked, "Oh no, did something happen to him?"

"Huh?" Ryoga was surprised by her tone, until he realized how what he had said must have sounded to her. "OH! No, no, no, my dad's fine. It's just that we both have trouble finding our way around, and his job keeps him overseas a lot. I still get to talk to him on the phone from time to time, though, and I run into my mom occasionally, too."

"Oh, I see." Akane said with relief. "Still, not getting to see your father for years..."

Ryoga nodded sadly. "My dad gave this weighted umbrella to me as a gift, since I was interested in martial arts. I've added more weight to it since then, of course, so I suppose it isn't exactly the same as when he gave it to me." Ryoga sighed and finally set the broken handle aside. "Still, I'm going to miss it." Then he gave a ruthful chuckle. "It's kind of funny that my umbrella broke today, though. It means that it lasted exactly five years."

Quickly doing the math in her head, Akane said, "So, you're turning 17 tomorrow then? We'll have to throw a party for you. I'll even bake you a cake myself!"

"Uh, thanks, but that's really not necessary." Ryoga said nervously. He would never insult Akane's cooking like Ranma did, but he was not exactly eager to eat it either.

"Nonsense!" Akane said happily, before getting up and heading to the kitchen. "Hey, Kasumi, do you know if we have the ingredients to make a cake?"

Ryoga just sighed. 'Well, today just keeps going downhill.' He thought. With another sigh, he turned on the television and waited for dinner.

Meanwhile, in the stairwell where she had been listening in on their conversation, Nabiki grinned, thinking, 'One man's misfortune is a smart woman's opportunity. Now, let's see if I can find Ranma. Hopefully, she should be getting back soon.' Heading out to the front entrance, Nabiki found the redhead returning as expected. What was surprising was what Ranma was doing.

"Why the Hell is this thing so heavy?" Ranma grumbled, as she passed through the gate, reduced to dragging the remains of the umbrella due to its weight.

Stepping out from the front door, Nabiki called out to the martial artist. "I take it that that's the rest of Ryoga's umbrella?"

Looking up in surprise, Ranma stood up straight and stretched her back, letting the heavy object fall to the ground. "Yeah, I'd been planning ta give it back ta Ryoga the same way he gave it ta me; by dropping it on his thick skull. But its way heavier than the last time I picked it up, so I'm gonna wait 'til later on that." Rubbing her spine, Ranma mumbled, "What's up with my back? Better see Dr. Tofu, and make sure nothing's wrong."

Nabiki grinned at Ranma's last comment, thinking 'I've got a pretty good idea what's giving you back pain, but I'll give it a couple days more before saying anything. I'm sure you'll be more receptive to the obvious solution by then.' Out loud, she addressed a more immediate issue. "Good thing you brought it back, it'll save you a trip."

"Huh, what d'ya mean?" Ranma asked, realizing Nabiki must want her to do something else.

"I mean I would have sent you back to get it if you had left it." Nabiki said. Before Ranma could say more, she went on. "Let's just say, things may go better for me if Ryoga has his umbrella later this month, and wouldn't he be happy if someone got his umbrella repaired as a gift for his birthday tomorrow?"

Ranma nodded, thinking, 'That makes sense. I didn't know it was his birthday, though.' To Nabiki, she said, "So d'ya want me to get it fixed so ya can give it ta him?"

Nabiki shook her head. "No, I want you to get it repaired, and then _you_ give it to him. He'd get suspicious if it was a gift from me."

"Alright, but where am I supposed ta find someone that can fix weighted umbrellas?" Ranma asked.

Nabiki's expression turned contemplative. 'That's right, Ranma doesn't use much training equipment.' Nabiki thought. Then an idea came to her. 'Maybe the same person who made Akane's mallet?' To Ranma, she said, "I have an idea about that, wait right here." With that, she headed back inside.

Sitting down next to the damaged umbrella, Ranma glared at it and thought, 'Well, today just keeps going downhill.'

A few minutes later, Nabiki came back out with a smile on her face and a note in her hand. "Alright, Saotome, head to this address." She handed the redhead the note and continued. "It's a shop that specializes in custom martial arts equipment. If anyone can fix that umbrella, they can."

Ranma looked at the note, and saw the address was in Nerima, so she wouldn't have to go far. There was one issue, though. "Uh, how much do ya think this'll cost? 'Cause I don't have much yen right now..."

Nabiki frowned, thinking, 'I suppose sometimes you have to invest money to make money. Oh well, I'll be making much more than this will cost if everything works out.' "You'll likely have to leave it there overnight for them to fix it, so I'll send the payment with you tomorrow when you go to pick it up."

Ranma nodded, with the thought, 'This is gonna be a pain, but I suppose it won't hurt ta get him a present.' Looking down at the weighted umbrella, she sighed and said, "Well, I better get started then, if I wanna make it back for dinner." Grunting as she picked up the damaged item, she headed out.

* * *

Ryoga smiled as he walked with Akane after school. Sure his umbrella had broken the day before, but apparently it had been for a worthy cause. It turned out that Kuno had stayed home to recover that day, meaning that Ryoga didn't have to deal with the kendoist coming for revenge on his birthday.

'And to top it all off, Ranma isn't even here to ruin my walk with Akane!' He thought joyfully. However, his elation receded slightly when he realized the problem with that. "Wait, where _is_ Ranma, then?" He mumbled.

Apparently he was loud enough for her to hear, as Akane responded. "No idea. As soon as our last class let out, he said something to me about making sure I got you back to the dojo, and then took off. The jerk wouldn't even tell me where he was going!" Then she turned to Ryoga with a smile. "Never mind. It's your birthday, so let's not let him ruin it, especially when he's not even here."

Ryoga nodded with a smile, thinking, 'Saotome hasn't been _quite_ as bad the last couple of days. Maybe this is his idea of a birthday present?'

The duo continued to chat politely until they got back to the dojo, though as usual, Ryoga let Akane do most of the talking. When they got back, Akane immediately headed to the kitchen to get started on Ryoga's cake.

Deciding to wait in the living room so he would not get lost, Ryoga set his pack against the wall, and was about to turn on the television, when he noticed something was off. While he could no longer use his umbrella, he had kept the handle for its sentimental value, sliding it through the straps on the top of his pack. However, it was gone now.

"Damn, I must not have tightened the straps enough, and it fell out." He said sadly. Heaving a sigh, he sat down to watch TV until dinner, and tried to come up with a way to avoid eating Akane's cake without offending her. 'I can understand why Saotome won't train her in martial arts. After all, she could get hurt! But couldn't she at least help Akane with her cooking?' Ryoga thought, not noticing his mental slip in regards to Ranma's gender, as his attention got absorbed by the show that was on.

* * *

Ryoga was happy. It had been several years since he had been able to celebrate his birthday with others. He had just finished eating a delicious dinner made by Kasumi, and without Ranma there, it had been even more enjoyable.

'Come to think of it, it's not like Ranma to miss Kasumi's cooking, so what is he up to?' Ryoga wondered.

As the rest finished eating, Akane said, "Since we just ate, we should wait a bit before having the cake. In the mean time, here's a present for you, Ryoga!"

Reaching down to her side, Akane picked up a wrapped box Ryoga had seen her set down there just before dinner. 'Judging by the way she's holding it, it must be pretty heavy.' Ryoga thought. Taking the package, he amended his thought, as he found the weight fairly easy to hold. 'Well, heavy for most people.'

Out loud, Ryoga smiled and said, "Thanks, Akane!" He opened up the package, and immediately saw the reason why it was so heavy. "Training weights!" He exclaimed in surprise.

"Yep!" Akane said happily, giving him a friendly smile. "I figured you must have used your umbrella for that kind of thing, since it was so heavy."

"Oh, thanks, Akane." Ryoga replied, returning her smile. 'It's a nice thought, but it's a shame it's not enough weight to do me much good.' Ryoga thought to himself. 'Still, I'm glad Akane got me something.'

"Oh dear," Kasumi spoke up with a frown. "I'm afraid I didn't get a chance to get you anything."

Hearing the guilty tone in her voice, Ryoga quickly said, "Don't worry, Kasumi. This wonderful meal was more than enough. Thank you."

That brought a smile back to the young woman's face. "Why, it's the least I could do." Kasumi said.

Akane turned to Nabiki and asked, "Did you get anything, Nabiki?"

Ryoga was not expecting anything from the mercenary girl, so he was mildly surprised when she said, "I got him some peace and quiet. Why else would Happosai just happen to drag our father and Genma off today?"

"Huh, I guess that's why I haven't seen any of them." Ryoga said.

As the Lost Boy turned back to talk to Akane, Nabiki smirked and thought, 'Of course, that's not the _only_ reason I got rid of Father and Saotome for the weekend, but it _does_ make a convenient excuse.'

After a little longer of Akane and Ryoga talking, they heard the sound of the front door opening, followed by the noise of something being dragged across the floor. "I guess Ranma's FINALLY getting back," Akane said in annoyance. "What is that sound, though?"

A mount later, Ranma entered the room backwards, dragging a box with her. As soon as she got it into the room, she let the box fall to the floor with a loud thud. Stretching her back, Ranma said, "Man, I'm glad that's over. Carrying this thing around is killing my back."

"What's that?" Akane asked, drawing Ranma's attention to the others in the room.

Turning around, Ranma nodded to the box, saying, "It's a birthday present for Ryoga." Shaking her head she went on. "I doubt anyone but that musclehead could lift the thing anyway."

Annoyed by the insult, but still curious what Ranma would have gotten him, Ryoga went over and asked, "What is it?"

Rather than elaborate, Ranma just said, "Go ahead and open it."

Kneeling down and looking at it, the box was less than impressive from the outside, being just a plain wooden box, without any wrapping like Akane's gift had. Finding a latch on the side, he opened the lid, and gasped in surprise at what he saw.

"My umbrella!" Ryoga cried with joy, a goofy smile on his face as he pulled it out of the box. Opening it up, he looked it over. While the top of the umbrella was the same, he could see no sign of the dents and scratches that had accumulated over the years, and the razor edge looked like it had been re-sharpened. Moving on to the shaft, it looked like it had been replaced, but the original handle had been re-attached.

Closing it up, he gave it a few test swings. "It's a bit lighter, but other than that, It's as good as new!"

Ranma nodded. "Apparently the guy I got ta repair it was the same guy who made it in the first place. He was surprised it broke, so he made the new shaft out of titanium."

Ryoga nodded, before an idea came to him. "Wait, I got it!" Going back to the table the Tendo sisters were still sitting at. Picking up one of the training weights Akane gave him, he grinned when he saw they were the type that came with straps to tie them around the arms and legs of the trainee. Putting the weights around the shaft of his umbrella, he swung it a few more times, before declaring, "Perfect!"

"Glad ya like it. It was a real pain ta carry across the ward." Ranma said. Turning to Kasumi, the redhead asked, "So, what's for dinner?"

"I'm afraid we already ate." Kasumi said. "There was some left over that I can heat up for you, though."

"Guess, I took too long. Thanks, Kasumi." Ranma said, sitting down at the table.

"Oh! While you're eating, I'll go get the cake I made for the rest of us!" Akane said happily.

"Or maybe I took just long enough." Ranma muttered as Akane went into the kitchen. Turning to Ryoga, who was still examining his newly repaired umbrella, she said, "Happy birthday, Pig Brain."

Ryoga was about to snap at the redhead for calling him that, but noticed that despite her words, her tone did not sound like she was insulting him. Deciding to let it slide for once, he said, "Thanks, Saotome."

To himself, Ryoga thought, 'Today really was pretty nice. Maybe my life's finally starting to turn around...'

"Here's the cake!" Akane said happily as she brought out her... creation.

'...maybe.' His thought concluded.

* * *

**AN:** And there we go! Like I said, long chapter. Make sure to let me know if the chapters start getting too long, because each has been longer than the last so far. Like I've said before, I do have quite a few ideas for this story, but there is a whole month to cover, so feel free to leave suggestions.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


End file.
